This invention relates to a battery of a kind comprising a plurality of cells and in particular, although not exclusively, to a battery of a kind comprising pairs of cathode and anode plates immersed in an electrolyte, e.g. a lead-acid type battery.
Commonly a multi-cell lead-acid battery comprises a plurality of pairs of plates arranged side by side in adjacent compartments disposed transversely to the length of a rectangular shape batter box. The plates in adjacent compartments are connected in series, and plates of the end compartments respectively provide positive and negative battery terminals.
For use in some applications, such as a stand-by power supply for telecommunication equipment, it is advantageous to arrange that the two terminals are provided adjacent one narrow end side of the rectangular battery box. This allows for ease of connection when a plurality of batteries are stored in situ side-by-side on a shelf in a rack, and allows easy disconnection and removal of a battery. This has been achieved with monoblocs with an even number of cells, but not in the case of an odd number of cells.
In the case of an odd number of cells various proposals have been put forward for conveniently and safely running a conductor along the length of the battery box so that a conventional terminal position at one end of the box is extended to a position near the other terminal at the other end of the battery box.
Although the known proposals for arranging two terminals to lie at a common end of a battery box are convenient and safe, they inevitably involve additional cost and weight, particularly the cost and weight of a conductor which is required to run along the length of the battery box.
The present invention seeks to provide an improved multi-cell battery, particularly but not necessarily one with an odd number of cells, in which the aforedescribed difficulties are mitigated or overcome.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention a multi-cell battery comprises a battery box comprising at least three battery plate compartments wherein the plates in one compartment lie in planes substantially perpendicular to plates in the other two compartments.
In the case of a lead-acid battery in which, conventionally, the plates lie in vertical planes, the plates in said one compartment will therefore lie perpendicular relative to the plates in said other two compartments when viewed in plan. The invention however is not limited in scope to requiring vertical orientation of plates and in the case, for example, of a battery having a gel type electrolyte, at least some of the plates may lie in horizontal planes.
Preferably, in accordance with the invention, said other two compartments lie side-by-side and the plates thereof are connected electrically in series via the plates in said one compartment.
The compartments may each be of a rectangular shape and, especially in the case of two compartments which lie side-by-side, the length direction of said one compartment preferably is equal to the sum of the widths of said other two compartments plus the thickness of the partition wall(s) between the side-by-side compartments.
All three compartments, as viewed in plan, in a plane perpendicular to the plates of the three compartments, may be of the same width and length dimensions. Accordingly they may be arranged as a group of three adjacent compartments having a group length which is one and a half times the length of an individual compartment and a group width which equals the length of an individual compartment.
The battery may comprise additional pairs of battery plate compartments, i.e. it may have an uneven number of compartments greater than or equal to three. The additional pairs typically will be arranged side-by-side and aligned with said other two compartments.
Conventionally battery cell compartments are of a rectangular shape as considered in a plane perpendicular to the plane of each plate in that compartment, but that is not an essential requirement, and the present invention also may be employed in relation to a battery in which at least one compartment is non-rectangular.
The invention provides also a compartmented box for use in a multi-cell battery of the present invention.